1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an infeed station and a stack gripper of a palletizing system. This equipment indicates a carriage that is supported on a machine frame of the infeed station in a way that allows it to be moved laterally; a stack conveyor mounted on the carriage for conveying stacks from an infeed position to a transfer position, from which the stacks can each be removed by the stack gripper; at least two stack chambers arranged side by side on the carriage which the stacks can be centered, and a control unit. The invention also relates to a method for transferring stacks from an infeed station to a stack gripper.
2. Description of the Related Art
Palletizing systems for palletizing stacks, which have an infeed station and a stack gripper, are well known from the prior art. The infeed station has two stack chambers on a carriage, and individual stacks can be set down in these chambers by a conveyance device. These stacks are conveyed one at a time by the stack conveyance device to a transfer position, where they are picked up by the stack gripper, which then places them on a pallet. To allow exact palletization, it is essential that the stacks be exactly positioned on the stack gripper. To ensure exact transfer of the stacks to the stack gripper, the stacks can be centered in the stack chamber before the transfer. In addition, in a previously known infeed station, an ejection device is provided, which is rigidly connected with the machine frame and with which the stacks can be pushed one at a time out of the infeed station into the stack gripper.
Moreover, EP 180 10 47 A discloses an infeed station in which the ejection device is supported on a carriage. The ejection device has an ejection plate for each stack chamber. The ejection plates serve the purpose of pushing the stacks onto the stack gripper. The ejection plates must be moved horizontally as well as vertically for each transfer, which requires a comparatively complicated design comprising many parts.